Stats

Lifespan: 1-4 yrs
Size: Small
Diet: Carnivore
Activity: Diurnal
Social: Solitary
Biome: Coastal seagrass beds
Range: Western Atlantic
Movement: Swimming
Breeding: Live Birth
Defense: Camouflage
Status: Vulnerable

About

An armored fish of Atlantic seagrass beds and coral reefs that swims upright by fluttering a tiny dorsal fin and anchors to vegetation with its prehensile tail. Males brood the eggs, carrying hundreds of fry in a pouch on the belly until they hatch.

Life cycle

1.
hatchling fry
A tiny fry hatches with a yolk sac and begins free-swimming once the sac is absorbed.
2.
juvenile
A juvenile takes on adult body shape and feeds on small prey, often in nursery waters.
3.
adult
Fully grown at adult size and coloration.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Syngnathiformes
Family: Syngnathidae
Genus: Hippocampus
Species: Hippocampus erectus